


Because Familiars Were Nothing But Trouble

by kleptodragon



Category: Dream SMP - Fandom, Minecraft (Video Game), Video Blogging RPF
Genre: Angst, Attempt at Humor, Author Is Sleep Deprived, Dadza, Eret-centric (Video Blogging RPF), Fluff, Fluff and Angst, Fluff and Humor, Gen, Humor, I Wrote This Instead of Sleeping, Other Additional Tags to Be Added, Tags Are Hard, They/Them Pronouns for Eret (Video Blogging RPF), and I am sad, and government thinks thats a nono, and one day they leave, and then everything goes wrong, and then the government comes to f it up, basically eret has a rare familiar, because it is 3am, bro i cant do tags, did i say humor? i meant, did phil find another child? yes he did, enjoy my brain, evil!Schlatt, evil!dream, mcyt - Freeform, mcyt brainrot, no beta we die like canon wilbur, picnic pog?, puffy and niki are both incredible queens with questionable morals, so they live in a secluded town
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-11-27
Updated: 2021-02-08
Packaged: 2021-03-10 03:28:36
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 9
Words: 11,755
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/27737671
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/kleptodragon/pseuds/kleptodragon
Summary: Every Mark was unique to each person and familiar-- the one thing they shared.The Mark told the person what kind of creature their familiar was, and where to find them.Some people found their familiars quickly.Some spent their entire lives searching.Eret hadn’t tried to search at all.Because familiars were nothing but trouble.orEret has a rare familiar and when they leave the one place they are safe in, the government immediately comes after them. Also, they might have accidentally gotten adopted somewhere in there.
Relationships: No Romantic Relationship(s)
Comments: 89
Kudos: 316





	1. The Inside

**Author's Note:**

> eret deserves better so have this fic

It wasn’t an eventful day when Eret decided they wanted to learn to read. It was more of an intriguing idea, but unlike most of their ideas, this one was possible. The problem they ran into was how to start. Their village was traditional. Eret wasn’t even sure it could be considered traditional-- it was just more simple, and the outside world didn’t interact with it often. The adults ran the village, and trading and stories were told orally. There weren’t any real uses for reading if you didn’t plan to leave the village. And nobody planned to leave the village. If you lived there, it was your final hope. The village was home to a lot of people, but nobody ever chose to live there. It was safe because it was hidden, and that was a godsend to everyone living there. At least, it was 30 years ago. Now, most of the people who originally moved were older, and in charge, and had forgotten what the outside world was like or why they left it in the first place. But Eret knew. They were the only newcomer in ages, and they remembered the outside world, and why they were there. It was because familiars were nothing but trouble. 

Eret knew the basics of the familiar system, having heard it when they were young, but some of the more complicated details were lost on them. Everyone had a familiar. It could be any kind of creature, but some were more common than others. Everyone also had a Mark. Every Mark was unique to each person and familiar-- the one thing they shared. Finally, the Mark told the person what kind of creature their familiar was. Some people found their familiars quickly. Some spent their entire lives searching. Eret hadn’t tried to search at all. Because familiars were nothing but trouble. 

Eret’s grandmother had told them why their parents gave them up when they were old enough to understand, around eight. Eret had a Mark, and it wasn’t a Mark that their parents liked. 

“They were afraid you would get hurt,” their grandmother said, trying to help them understand. “And they were afraid because of you, they would get hurt too. And they decided that avoiding being hurt was better than being a parent.” There was a tone of bitterness in her voice, now that Eret recalled it, although they hadn’t noticed at the time. It only made them respect her more. They respected her, and loved her, and lived with her, until the day she died. And she did die. Because familiars were nothing but trouble. 

They were looking for Eret. They were looking for the mark on Eret’s left ankle, the one that plagued Eret every day. And Eret’s grandmother had refused to give them up, and They said that she was making a mistake. And then she had died. Eret ran, and they ended up in a little village that wouldn’t tell Them anything. Because familiars were nothing but trouble, and they knew firsthand. 

And now Eret wanted to learn to read. They were sure that figuring it out wouldn’t be the hard part. The hard part would be finding someone who both had something to read, and was willing to teach Eret to read. Most of them believed that reading was nothing but trouble, because it was something from the outside, and the outside was familiars, and familiars were nothing but trouble. Eret didn’t think everything from the outside could be bad. But everybody they knew disagreed.

They didn’t find someone. Not through weeks of carefully asked questions to gauge reactions, not through casual “hey, what if we learned to read” queries slipped into conversation, not through direct questions-- “do you have any books?” Eret could have given up on the idea. They gave up on a lot of ideas, but that was necessary when you just had so many. This one was stuck in their head. Eret convinced themself that it was just because they had spent so much time on it-- they couldn’t stop now! But in the back of their head, they knew they wanted something else. Something they weren’t ready to think about at all. 

It was only a month later when Eret really started considering it. They could go outside. There was bound to be something outside that could show them to read, someone that would take pity on them. They might even be able to do it without telling the other people in the village, if they were careful. Eret wasn’t sure what would happen if they were caught. They pushed that thought to the back of their mind. 

It was only a week later when Eret packed a bag. They didn’t want to stay outside for more than a day, but they had decided to err on the side of caution, and packed food and supplies for three nights in the cold woods. Eret really hoped it wouldn’t come to that, and that they would be back in their own bed by the next night. It was just a day trip. It would be a very unpleasant surprise for it to be an overnight trip. 

It was only 5 minutes later when Eret realized they hadn’t fully thought this through. The village was miles away from any “outside” that could teach them to read. Eret was reasonably athletic, but they weren’t sure how fast and how far they could really go. They weren’t sure how long their tracks were covered for, either. That part of the plan was hastily thought up and not particularly well executed, and Eret was a little bit worried. They were more than a little bit worried, but they had other pressing issues on their mind. 

It was a perfect crossroads. They could return, and try this again tomorrow, or even just forget about it and return to a normal life in the village. Or they could keep moving, with not even a faint idea of what lay ahead, just to learn to read, in hopes that it would lead them to something else. Logically, Eret knew it would be better to try again another day. But they couldn’t help it. They broke into a jog. The faster they went, the sooner they would get somewhere. Somewhere. Anywhere at all. 


	2. Eret Gets Forcibly Invited To A Family

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Eret runs into a bookstore to get away from a creepy guy on the streets.  
> Guess who's running the bookstore! That's right, it's the guy who canonically fucked a fridge.

The man on the side of the road wasn’t a friend, and Eret had learned a lesson. Don’t trust anyone. Maybe they had re-learned it. When they were young, they were wary, skittish, careful. But now they had let their guard down. Foolishly, they thought. They resolved not to make the same mistake again. They were thinking about how they weren’t going to trust anyone ever again when they realized the man was still following them. Eret tried to speed up inconspicuously, but the man did too. In a last ditch effort, they ducked into a bookstore. They gestured frantically at the door, and the guy reading a book at the front counter got the message. He jogged over to the door and locked it. 

“I’m sorry,” he said. “That’s Brian. We’re trying to deal with him, but he hasn’t actually managed to do anything other than threaten and chase children so far, so…” He trailed off, but Eret understood. They nodded. 

“I’m Phil, by the way. What’s your name, miss?” He looked closer at Eret. “Or.. whatever you prefer to go by.” 

Eret shrugged. “Eret. Call me anything.”

Phil smiled. “Nice to meet you, Eret. You can camp out here until Brian leaves. I hate when he camps out by our bookstore, scares away customers.”

Eret chuckled. They were still on edge, afraid to say much of anything, but the way Phil’s eyes crinkled at the corners when he smiled relaxed them a little bit. It felt genuine, Eret thought, although they were afraid of their own judgement. 

“How old are you?” Phil asked, walking back to his desk.

“17,” Eret answered, still shuffling their feet by the door. 

“Oh, you’re just about the same age as one of my sons, Wilbur! He’s in the back, if you want to meet him. You two might get along.”

Eret offered a weak smile that they hoped conveyed that they wouldn’t mind meeting Wilbur, but they really didn’t care too much.

“I’ll go get him,” Phil said, offering another warm smile.

A minute later, the man came back with a lanky teenage wearing a beanie. 

“Wilbur,” he said, offering his hand.

“Eret,” they said, doing the same. 

Wilbur fidgeted with his fingernails, clearly feeling slightly awkward. That was okay. Eret felt the same way, plus a little bit of terrified, uncertain, and worried. 

Then it hit Eret. They were in a  _ bookstore _ . This was, from a practical standpoint, the best place they could be. The difficult part would be asking for help.

Eret used to be talkative. They knew everybody in the village, so they could carry on friendly banter from the gossipy grandmothers to the small children, born in the village and never knowing anything but. Eret was quickly discovering that talking to strangers was a very different task, even when they were as friendly as Phil and Wilbur. 

Phil broke the silence. “I can drive you back to your home once you’re ready. Do you want me to do that.”

Eret hesitated. “It’s a long way away,” they muttered.

“But you walked here, didn’t you?” Phil asked, confused. 

“I started three days ago.”

“Where were you going?”

Eret shrugged.

“Well, maybe you should explain a little bit more. I’m not quite understanding,” Phil said in a kind voice, inviting Eret to speak. Wilbur still stood behind Phil, watching the two talk. 

Eret tried to explain in the simplest way possible that they came from an isolated village. They didn’t want to bring up their Mark. The last time they talked about it, they almost got captured by the government. And Phil was just so nice. He didn’t need to be brought into the tangle of ideas and fear that was Eret’s life. 

Finally, Eret brought up that the reason they left was to learn to read. When they said it, Phil let out a bark of surprise.

“I’m not laughing at you! Not at all! It’s just that-” Phil gestured around the shop at all the bookshelves. “You’re in the perfect place.”

Eret chuckled as well, relaxing a little bit. Phil wasn’t judging them. That was a relief in itself. 

Phil’s face became serious again. “If you want to go back to your village, I can take you. But if you want to stay with my family for a little while, we can show you how to read. And you can meet my other children.”

“Dad’s kinda known for taking in lost children off the streets,” Wilbur piped in from behind. “He’s got four of us right now and apparently-” he glanced at Phil, who had a sheepish look on his face- “He’s looking for more.”

“I don’t look! They just continually show up,” Phil defended himself. “Anyway, you’re welcome here, Eret. Do you want to stay with us?”

Eret glanced around. They felt safe enough. Decisively, they nodded. “That would be nice.”

  
  


Phil had closed the shop early to take Eret home with them. Wilbur had been the only kid at the bookstore that day, so it was just the three of them in the car on the way home. Phil told stories about his kids’ adventures. Eret was grateful they didn’t have to talk. Phil’s stories were funny, too.

“Oh, and L’manberg!”

“No, please, don’t talk about L’manberg, that was a long time ago-” Wilbur frantically argued from the back seat.

“But it’s a funny story! You sure you don’t want Eret to hear it?”

“YES.”

“I’m going to tell it anyway.” Phil smiled at Wilbur in the back seat. “Everyone deserves to hear the saga of L’manberg.”

“It wasn’t a-”

“Shh, Eret wants to hear the story.”

Eret nodded. They were interested at this point. They wanted to know why Wilbur was so desperate for the story not to be told. 

“So one day, Wilbur and my younger children, Tommy and Tubbo, decided to build a city out of cardboard…”

By the end of the story, Eret was doubled over with laughter. Wilbur was blushing bright red, but even he couldn’t keep a smile off his face. 

“So Wilbur felt  _ so bad _ for kicking down the entire city that he ran to me- I was cooking- with his cardboard sword. ‘Kill me, Dad, I deserve it,’ he said. So of course I played along, and I took his little sword and I poked him lightly once. And I promise you, you’ve never seen a more dramatic death than Wilbur’s.”

“It wasn’t that dramatic.” Wilbur said defensively. Phil gave him a look. “Okay, so it was a little bit dramatic. I was  _ eleven _ .” 

“You were a very dramatic eleven-year-old.”

“I’d prefer to leave those years of my life behind.”

“You’re still a dramatic seventeen-year-old.”

“Shut up.”

  
  


When they arrived at the house, Eret was shocked by how big it was. It was built out of wood, and Eret ran their hands along the wall. It was so smooth and polished. Back at home, the wooden walls were rough and would give your hands splinters if you so much as touched them. 

Phil noticed their amazement and grinned. “It’s nice isn’t it? We had it built specifically for the boys, once we adopted them all. That’s why there’s a loft over there. You can go check it out if you want. I’d bet money that Tubbo’s in there right now, though. That’s his favorite spot.” Phil gestured at a corner where Eret saw there was a ladder. Their gaze traveled upwards toward a platform supported by beams. It looked like a balcony overlooking the living room, but it was filled with pillows and blankets. Eret had never seem anything like it. Phil had said they were allowed to go look at it, so after they’d slipped their shoes off (out of courtesy- Phil had said they didn’t have to, but Phil was too kind) they walked over to it. 

Slowly, they’d climbed the ladder. When they reached the top, they saw a smaller kid with tousled dark hair with his nose in a book. 

The kid looked up. “Who are you? Did Phil bring you home?”

Eret nodded.

The boy laughed. “He did the same to me! Here, you can come up, it’s okay.” He patted the pillows next to him. “What’s your name?”

“Eret. What’s yours?” they asked, crawling onto the small platform. They had to pull their knees up to fit. They were much taller than the smaller boy.

“I’m Tubbo.” He continued happily reading his book. 

Eret couldn’t help but smile. They liked that they were just immediately accepted. It was funny- from everything they’d heard, Phil seemed to bring home children quite a lot. Then again, they’d only met two of the four children Phil claimed to have. 

  
  


Phil made pasta for dinner. Tubbo seemed very excited about it. 

“Does he not make pasta very much?” Eret asked, confused.

“No, he makes it a lot. I just really like pasta,” Tubbo answered, climbing down the ladder at a speed Eret wouldn’t have thought was possible. They took their time climbing down. They didn’t want to fall. Wilbur was already in the dining room, smiling at something on his phone. Tubbo had run in just ahead of Eret. There was another boy with messy blond hair banging down the stairs. 

“Could you be any louder, Tommy?” Phil called. 

“I can if you want!” Tommy called back. “Lior will be down in a second too!”

“Is Lior your other brother?” Eret asked Tubbo. They assumed so. 

“No, Lior is Tommy’s familiar! He’s a big black dog. Mine are the bees outside. Technically only the queen is my familiar, but I love them all equally.” Tubbo chirped, scooping huge heaps of pasta into his bowl.

“Oh.” Eret gazed longingly at the pasta. They were hungry, but they didn’t want to serve themself before everyone else was at the table. The adults of the village had taught them some manners. 

Phil carried a loaf of bread out to the table. He noticed Eret not eating. “Eat something! Techno’s going to take another million years to show up anyway, might as well get it while it’s hot.”

Eret turned to Tubbo. “Is Techno your other brother?”

“Yeth,” Tubbo answered, his answer muffled by the food in his mouth. Eret breathed a sigh of relief. They were glad they hadn’t been wrong in their assumption twice in a row.

Eret reached hungrily for the bread, now that they had Phil’s permission. God, they were  _ starving _ . 

Tommy sat down noisily into the chair on the other side of the table. 

“Who are you?” he asked immediately.

“Thif is Ereth,” Tubbo answered, starting on another huge bowl of pasta.

“I’m Eret,” they said, waving their hand awkwardly. 

“DAD, DID YOU FIND ANOTHER ONE?” Tommy called to the kitchen.

“YES, AND YOU’RE NOT GOING TO SWEAR AT THIS ONE,” Phil called back.

“Well, in that case…” Tommy turned back to Eret. “I don’t know who you are, but I’m pretty sure you’re a bitch.”

“TOMMY!”


	3. Days, Nights, Bright Lights

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Eret loves staying with Phil.  
> They're already fitting into the family like a puzzle piece.  
> But in the dark, things aren't always what they seem.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> edit: i fucked up the formatting on this one, i’ll fix it tomorrow when i have my computer instead of my phone- sorry if it looks bad!  
> edit: i have un-fucked up the formatting. sorry lol

Eret had spent 3 days at Phil’s house now, and the days were better than they could have ever imagined. Tubbo was showing them how to read, which amused all of them because he was the one who had the most trouble with it. Phil was a fantastic cook, and the food he made was so different from what they’d had in the village. Eret was fascinated by it. They’d never really had meat other than chicken before because in the village, they had to grow everything they ate, and cows and other animals just took up too much space. And every night, Wilbur and Techno would invite Eret (and occasionally Tubbo) to play board games with them. Eret was getting remarkably good at Clue for only having played a couple times. 

What they had most noticed was that they had missed a lot. They felt some regret about what they must have missed in the village. What could have happened if they’d left earlier was a mystery, but Eret was enjoying their time Outside. It was contrary to anything they’d ever been told. 

The days were better than they could have ever imagined, but they hated the nights. The big empty room scared them, and they slept fitfully every night. 

It was always red first. Then the eyes in the corners of the room opened, and Eret’s limbs were pinned by heavy, leaden horrors. It was purple, and the hurricane swirls flew around their head like angry bees, and Eret, in their dream, tried desperately to cover their eyes. It was black, and they were sucked further down into a pit of rage and hatred and terrifying whispers of blood. 

Then they sat up, awakening in a flush of sweat and terror. In the muddled space between nightmare and reality, they saw a pale face staring through the blinds, more tangibly real than the rest but still just beyond Eret’s grasp.

Eret had screamed the first time. They’d woken everyone in the house except Wilbur, who’s bedroom was downstairs. Phil had told Tubbo and Techno to go back to bed, and then he had sat with Eret. Eret was crying, less about being scared than of the mortification of being noticed. They didn’t want to be seen as weak or a burden to these nice people who they had just met. They tried to hide their still-trembling hands behind their back, but Phil had pulled their hands out and held them and reassured Eret, calming them down. 

“Red, purple, black, white,” Eret muttered. 

“What?” Phil asked patiently.

“The colors. There were colors.” Eret whispered, barely a breath in the dusky gray of the room.

“I’m going to turn on the light,” Phil said, standing up and crossing the room. Eret shielded their eyes at first, but they slowly calmed down as their eyes got used to the warm golden light of the lamp and the tangibility of their surroundings. “Are you okay waiting here for a couple minutes? I’m going to go get a couple things for you,” Phil said. 

Eret nodded, no longer crying, but salty tears still leaking from their eyes. They wiped them away coarsely with a borrowed, woolen pajama sleeve. Phil came back with icy water, a washcloth, and a bag of colored marbles. Eret wanted to ask why, but they didn’t want to look up at Phil. They knew their face was still wet and bloated red from crying. 

Phil dipped the washcloth in the water and tapped Eret’s chin, signaling them to look up. They obliged, and Phil carefully wiped their face, Embarrassed but grateful, Eret muttered a quick “thanks” before dipping their head down again to look at their feet.

“Cup your hands,” Phil said. Once Eret had done so, he poured the multicolored marbles into their hands. “Count them. It always used to help Wilbur when he had nightmares. It might help you too,” he said. 

“I’m sorry,” Eret said, slightly louder. 

“You don’t have anything to be sorry for. I just want you to feel safe.” Phil said firmly. 

“I do.” Eret said, smiling a little bit.

“Do you want me to stay in here the rest of the night?” Phil asked, sitting down on the bed next to Eret. 

Eret hesitated. “I don’t want to inconvenience…”

Phil cut them off. “I’ll stay in here. You can keep the lights on or count the marbles as long as you like. I’ll be here.”

Eret felt like crying again, but this time they were tears of relief. Relief that they weren’t hated. Relief that they weren’t treated like a burden. Relief that for once, someone was willing to stay there with them. Even when the lights turned off.

The second night, they hadn’t screamed, just let out a sharp gasp. They rubbed their eyes, trying to get the white face out of their mind. They ran out of the room, trying to step lightly. They shut the door behind them, trying to separate themself from the place. Eret walked slowly and carefully down the hallway to Phil’s room. They cautiously opened the door and saw the man’s figure peacefully resting on the bed. Eret didn’t want to wake him up, but their heart was still racing and their head still throbbed with pain. They closed the door again and curled up, their knees to their chest, against the wall next to the door. Silent sobs shook their body, but as the minutes past, their breathing slowed. An hour or so later, they fell asleep outside Phil’s room, tears still staining their face. 

Phil found them first in the morning, and when Eret woke up, they stammered out an apology.

“Did you have a nightmare again?” Phil asked. Eret nodded.

“You can wake me up, you know,” Phil said, kneeling down to Eret’s eye level. Eret suddenly felt much younger than they really were. 

“I didn’t want to bother you.”

“You wouldn’t have.”

“I’m sorry.”

“Stop apologizing. You haven’t done anything wrong.” 

“Sorry.”

“You don’t need to apologize for apologizing, either,” Phil laughed, the corners of his eyes crinkling again. Eret smiled weakly as well.

“Do you want some pancakes now?” Phil asked, and Eret had followed him downstairs.

The third night was the worst. Phil had offered Eret some sleeping pills to hopefully help with the nightmares, and Eret had gratefully accepted. They didn’t want another night of being scared. 

The pills hadn’t worked. The same dream had happened, everything down to the face outside the window. But this time the face hadn’t disappeared. And Eret hadn’t been able to move their limbs, moving like lead and thick molasses. Pinned. They tried desperately to scream. They forced a small yelp out before relaxing their muscles, exhausted. The face was still at the window. Eret couldn’t do anything, couldn’t say anything, just panic. Their head throbbed, burning with pain, with anger, with absolute terror. The adrenaline and dread rushing through their body gave them the strength to call out, once, and Phil heard them, and he came running into the room. He found Eret there, paralyzed with fear and the pull of the sleeping drug, drenched in sweat, and he had never seen anyone look more pathetic and scared. 

Eret winced, remembering the dark nights. Remembering the red, and the purple, and the white and black. They didn’t want to think about the nights. They didn’t want to let the sunken, rotting memories intrude on the best days they’d ever had. 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> originally this note said to guess what the color symbolism was but it turns out i changed the plot so the colors don't mean anything. sorry lol, i had better ideas


	4. Touch The Sky

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Eret discovers they can climb higher than they ever thought they could, but it comes with painful memories.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> ya boi the author finally finished finals so there might be some more frequent updates

“Do you want peanut butter and jelly or turkey and cheese?” Phil called to Eret. “I know what the boys prefer because we do picnic day all the time but I’ve never made you sandwiches before.” 

“Turkey and cheese, please,” Eret answered, looking up at Phil from where they were trying to pack their backpack. 

Tommy came thumping down the stairs behind them. “I’m all ready, Father!” he called loudly.

Phil rolled his eyes. “Good job, Tommy. Can you get Eret a water bottle?”

“Sure,” Tommy said, slamming a cabinet open. Eret winced at the noise. 

“You don’t have to be so damn loud about it,” Phil said. Eret could swear he was reading their mind. 

Tommy slammed the cabinet shut. “Yeah I do.” Eret suppressed a laugh. They were annoyed by the noise, but amused by Tommy’s attitude. 

Wilbur and Techno walked down next.

“Picnic days are always fun, I’m sure you’ll enjoy them Eret,” Wilbur said, grinning at them. 

Eret smiled back. Even though they were the same age as Wilbur and Techno, they felt like the younger sibling. Well, technically Wilbur and Techno were 2 months older, so they supposed they were. Eret had never been a middle child. They had never really gotten to be any type of child at all. They were enjoying it. 

“We do this every other Saturday,” Tommy said, somehow already having finished his sandwich. “Lior comes along because he needs exercise. Wilbur and Techno haven’t found their familiars yet, but Techno’s is supposed to be a horse so maybe his familiar will come on picnic days eventually too.”

Eret looked down at their own sandwich. They’d only taken two bites. Carefully, they rewrapped it. They weren’t that hungry. They were on edge. The last time they’d done something like this was two weeks before their grandmother died. They winced, then mentally reprimanded themself. They had to stop flinching every time they remembered something. 

Phil noticed Eret’s lack of interest in their sandwich. “You have to eat, Eret,” he said, joking but with a sterner undertone.

“I’m not hungry.” Eret muttered. 

“Well, when you get hungry later I’m feeding you extra.”

Eret nodded, leaning back on the picnic blanket. “This is a nice hill.”

Phil grinned. “It really is. I’ve been coming here since before I adopted the boys. Once they were old enough, we started doing picnic days.” 

Eret nodded. They gazed out at the mustard-yellow fields. “Where I used to live, we only had one hill. And it wasn’t very tall. I bet I can see your house from here,” they added, grinning. 

“You can! It’s right over there, see, behind those three trees,” Phil said, leaning over to Eret to point it out. He turned to his left, where the two youngest boys were running around. “Hey, you should go climb the trees with Tommy and Tubbo! They can show you all their favorite trees to climb. They’re constantly trying to explain their tree ranking system to me,” he laughed. 

Eret hesitated for a moment. Phil saw the expression on their face.

“They’ll be thrilled to have you, don’t worry. They love those trees, and they love talking to you, too.”

Eret nodded silently, getting up. They stuffed their hands in their pockets and walked over to the two boys. 

“What are you guys doing?” they asked.

“Climbing trees!” Tubbo exclaimed. “You should try, Eret, it’s super fun. The pine tree over there is the best one though.”

“No, the third oak is better, it has better grippability,” Tommy argued.

“But you can go so much higher on the pine tree. It’s worth the effort, I think.” Tubbo grinned at Eret, who offered a small smile back. 

“Sure, I’ll try climbing the pine tree. I’ve never really done it before, though, so I’m not sure how well I’ll do.” They laughed, relaxing a little bit. Tubbo grabbed Eret’s hand, pulling them over. He ran behind the tree. 

“It’s best to start back here, the branches are thicker,” he explained cheerfully.

“Okay,” Eret said, carefully looking up. They mentally mapped their path. “Okay.”

Placing their hands on the branches, they started up. They didn’t stop until they found a nice fork in the branches that they could perch comfortably on.

“YOU’RE REALLY HIGH UP, ERET!” Tommy called from below. Eret looked down and grinned. They really were high up. 

“I KNOW,” they called back. “ISN’T IT AMAZING?” 

“I didn’t know you were so good at climbing trees, Eret,” Wilbur said as they walked into the house.

Eret looked down at their feet and smiled, rubbing the back of their neck. “Neither did I, honestly. I just kind of kept going up.”

“Well, it was really impressive! I only got that far up once before and that was when Tommy bet me five dollars I couldn’t do it last July. It was really scary but also fun,” Tubbo chimed in. He frowned. “Tommy, you never gave me the five dollars.”

“I’m a minor. Nothing I say is legally binding,” Tommy said, not even looking up from his phone.

“Anyway, it was very impressive,” Wilbur said, ignoring Tommy and Tubbo.

“Thanks. I think it was more fun than scary,” Eret said thoughtfully. “It was like I was flying, except I wasn’t, and I was protected by all the branches.”

“I’m not sure what you’re trying to say, but I’m sure it was nice up there.”

“Yeah,” Eret said. “It was. It really was.”

When Eret got back upstairs to their room- they’d already started thinking of it as their room- they lay down on their bed, staring at the ceiling. They closed their eyes. The memories came flooding back. 

Apples. Pie. Strawberry blonde hair with streaks of gray, tied up in a bun. Yellow flowers. Red leaves. Sticky mud. A voice telling them to “look how beautiful it is, Alastair!” A green bottle of water. Hiking boots caked with mud. A promise to visit again.

Gunshots.

Eret’s eyes flew open. Breathing heavily, they sat up. 

Gunshots.

They shook themself, trying to escape the image.

Gunshots.

They stood up. Walking out the door, they slammed the door behind them. Eret stalked down to the kitchen to get a snack. 

“Hungry now?” Phil asked from the couch. Eret nodded. They didn’t trust themself to speak.

“I can get you something if you like-”

“I’m fine,” Eret choked out, trying to keep a normal voice. They kept their face turned away from Phil. Grabbing a bag of chips from the pantry, they walked outside. Sitting on the wicker chair on the porch, they squeezed their eyes shut. They tried valiantly to stop it, but tears leaked out of the corners of their eyes. 

“It’s better now,” Eret whispered to themself, trying to remember the feeling they’d had up in the tree. “It’s better here. Don’t worry about then. Don’t worry. Don’t worry.” Falling into a rhythm, they chanted it in their head until their breathing steadied. They didn’t touch their chips. 

“I don’t want you to have another nightmare,” Phil said, sitting on the edge of Eret’s bed. He hesitated. “Is there anything you want me to do?” 

Eret thought for a moment, fiddling with the blankets. 

“I don’t know,” they whispered softly. “I don’t know if there’s anything you _can_ do. I can’t stop it. I tried.” They closed their eyes. They couldn’t cry for a third- or was it the fourth?- time today. 

“I know you tried.” 

Silence fell over the room.

“I think I’ll be fine for tonight. I can always go get you if it happens again.” Eret said, trying to smile.

“I don’t want to be pessimistic, but… you realize it’ll probably happen again?” Phil said, a concerned look on his face.

“Then I can go get you when it happens.” 

“If you’re sure,” Phil said, getting up. He sent a last look at Eret as he closed the door and turned the lights off.

The smile fell off Eret’s face as soon as the older man looked away. They weren’t crying. They weren’t going to cry, not now. 

The tears would come in the middle of the night. They were sure of it. 

The dream was different. The white face started in the corners, then walked closer, multiplying, growing long insect limbs. Then the face was in front of them, all of a sudden, startling them. Eret opened their mouth to scream.

Nothing came out. A gloved hand covered their mouth, muffling the sound. Then the face moved, and Eret realized it was attached to a body, someone dressed all in black. Looking around, they realized something.

It wasn’t a dream.

The figure must have seen the understanding dawn on Eret.

“Be quiet,” they hissed. Eret thought it was a man’s voice, but they couldn’t be sure. They tried to say something back, but the thick leather glove still on their face stopped the words. 

“I’m going to give you some instructions,” the figure explained patiently. “If you don’t follow them, I’ll knock you out. I wouldn’t hesitate to kill you, but the boss wants you alive.” He peered closer at Eret. “I wouldn’t know why. You don’t seem like you’re any use to us.” 

“Now,” he continued, “If you scream, or yell, or try to get anyone’s attention, I won’t hesitate to kill whoever’s attention you manage to get.”

 _Phil_ , Eret thought. The threat of him hurting their new friends, their… family, almost- was enough to make them nod their head, silently agreeing to the terms.

“Good,” the figure said. “Now, I’m going to let you go.” His face curved into a sickening smile. “I’ve always liked the thrill of the chase.”


	5. Bloody Wishes, Freezing Eyes

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> this is a very short chapter where i pack in all of the fear and emotion that i can, i could have combined this with the next chapter but then the suspense wouldn't be there  
> also i am literally freezing right now i think the heater's broken or maybe i just need to put on some nice fluffy socks

“Run,” the figure whispered, barely a breath in the dark night. 

Eret didn’t hesitate. They jumped out of the bed and took off, still in red plaid pajamas, adrenaline rushing through their veins. They ran out the front door, slamming it behind them. The cold winter air was a shock, freezing their lungs and shortening their breaths. 

They glanced back and forth and made a quick decision to run into the woods, rather than down the road. At first, they tried to avoid the sharp branches, but thinking about the face… the face, the face, the one in their dreams, the one that terrorized them now- they sped up, the branches whipping their face with thorns and prickles. 

Wiping their face with their sleeve, their hand came away dark and wet, either with tears or blood. It was too dark to see, and too late to care, and Eret just kept running. Counting the steps. Counting, until they reached hundreds, and more. 

Tears flowed down their face, not from any emotion, but from cold, and pain, and the cruel saltiness of the night. Dark branches, reaching out with knobbed hands and screaming knothole faces. Frozen dirt, tripping and catching themself, jarred but still moving. Burning legs, screaming out for any reprieve from the pressure, the cold, the millions of skin-deep scratches. It felt like hell, in the way Eret had never thought it could- cold ice and fear, rather than fire and anger. Were they imagining the footsteps behind them? Were they imagining the sky narrowing upon them? Were they imagining ravens with yellow eyes peering from the trees? 

They couldn’t be sure. They couldn’t trust the dirt beneath their feet. They trusted in it not willingly, but because their hands were shaking, and trust was the fifth or sixth thing on their mind behind death and familiars and wishes and family and- 

Eret tripped. Their knees scraped the rough roots on the ground, their shirt caught on a branch. They let out deep, heavy breaths, still barely crying. They tried to get up, tearing their clothes open, but falling again. Their legs were failing them. Their lips were blue, parting in a soft curse that was barely audible in the cold, stark navy midnight. 

They couldn’t go on.

They wouldn’t go on.

They had to stop.

They wouldn’t stop. 

They crawled behind a bush, pulling their legs as dead weights. Curling into a fetal position, they stared at the sky. They were too tired to feel anything, too tired to wish for another, softer reality. And they watched the world fade out, watched it color itself like a kaleidoscope, before falling into deep, velvet black.

_You’ve lost the game._

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> psst psst thanks for all the support  
> i have notifications on for the email address for this account and a special noise for ao3 emails, every time i hear the little twinkle noise i know someone left a comment and it never fails to make me smile just a little bit  
> thank you for all my little smiles :)


	6. An Enigma of A Rescuer

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Eret wakes up in a truck.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> i wish i had a better excuse for not updating but my excuses are stardew valley and papa's freezeria  
> it's not my fault i suddenly got really addicted to digital smoothies okay

Eret woke up in the dark.

Their first instinct was to wonder whether they were dead. Then, sitting up, their head hit a ceiling. They weren’t dead. They cursed at themself for even considering the thought. 

Their second instinct was to scream, but they rejected that idea too. No matter where they were, it would probably a bad decision. Eret wondered if they were past the point of bad decisions. They didn’t really know what was happening, but it didn’t seem like anything they did could make the situation worse. After all, they were stuck in a- Eret ran their hands along the ceiling above their head- a plastic box. And it seemed like they were moving.

They put their head in their hands. They already had a headache. They breathed in and out, trying to keep a rhythm. Phil had helped them with these things. Now they had to do it on their own. And this wasn’t a dream, it was a real life nightmare, Eret thought bitterly. 

The box jolted. Eret hit their head again. A clatter came from behind them, and they turned around to see bright sunlight streaming in. Instinctively, they shielded their eyes. Their headache was only getting worse. 

“Are you awake?” a voice asked from the direction of the light. “Actually that’s kind of a useless question because if you weren’t awake, I definitely just woke you up. It would still be nice for you to answer though.” 

Eret didn’t answer. It didn’t sound like the face in their dreams, but if their vague memories of last night- was it last night?- were correct, then whoever was in the light was an enemy. Eret didn’t talk to enemies. They were kind of regretting talking to anyone in the first place. 

“Look, I’m on your side, I stole you back from the bastard because I thought it woudl be fun. Also you seem less dangerous than most of the other people he’s captured,” the voice said. Eret’s eyes were adjusting to the light slowly, and a feminine figure with hair tied up in a ponytail was vaguely visible. 

“Look, I can  _ see  _ you. You’re staring at me. Not talking isn’t going to do anything. Just tell me your name.” 

“Eret,” they offered warily. They didn’t see what harm that could do, unless the woman was one of the fairies in myths they had heard. She certainly looked the part, though, with her poofy rainbow hair.

“Good, now we can get somewhere. I’m Puffy, and I’m smuggling you to my cottage in the woods.”

Eret was thrown for a loop, momentarily. They were aware they were being smuggled. They were not expecting to be brought to a cottage in the woods.

They hesitated. “....Why?”

Puffy looked them up and down. “You look like a 14 year old kid, and you were being forcibly captured by a man I dislike quite a bit. I think that’s enough reason.”

“So you’re not on his side? Who is he? And I’m seventeen.” Eret’s curiosity won out over his desire to stay silent.

“You don’t look seventeen, you’re skinny as hell. He won’t tell us his name, everyone calls him something different. My personal favorite things to call him are curse words. And I’m kind of on his side. He can afford my rates.”

“Will you bring me back to my house?”

Puffy snorted. “Hell no. That makes things worse for both of us. Even if I knew where the heck your house was, I wouldn’t bring you back. I’m doing this out of the goodness of my heart, and also because my roommate would literally strike me with lightning if she found out I chose money over a child. Get in the front seat, I want to keep driving if I can.”

“I’m not a child. Why should I get in your front seat.”

“Kid, did you see what happened when you were in a nice normal house? I can guarantee that you’ll be found about sixty times faster. I’m not getting paid either way, I might as well bring you back to my roommate. She’s the one with strong morals.” 

“No. I’m not going with you.”

“ _ Eret _ . You’re not being valiant or loyal to your family. You’re throwing yourself to the wolves.”

“Then give me a good reason to go with you!” Eret yelled. They were almost crying. They wouldn’t let themself reach that point again. It would only give Puffy more ammo against them. 

“For one thing, those people are after you. I don’t know why. There’s some sort of reason they’re fixated on you, and they aren’t going to stop until they catch you. For another good reason, my roommate is literally a saint. Once we meet her, I can go back to my job of kidnapping people for  _ good reasons  _ and she can teach you some black magic or something. Please. Just come back to my house. For some reason I don’t understand, I don’t actually want you to die!” Puffy was almost yelling, and Eret had shrunk back without realizing it.

“I’m sorry for being so loud.” She exhaled, looking tired. “It’s only a little while longer. Please?”

Eret hesitated for a moment more. “Fine. But if this backfires, I’m blaming you.”

“Don’t worry, I’m used to it.”

The two drove in silence, Eret clutching the armrests. They’d only been in a car once or twice, and the experience was rather foreign. And quite fast. 

Puffy glanced at them from where she was driving. “So what the hell are your pronouns?”

“Anything works,” Eret muttered, eyes still locked on the road in front of them.

Puffy nodded sagely. “Just wondering.”

Another stretch of land passed by.

“So do you have any idea why the government is after you?”

“No.”

“Mhm. Maybe my roommate can figure it out.”

They drove another mile or so.

“Hey, so-”

“Can you stop asking me questions?” Eret burst out. 

“Geez. Touchy.”

Eret didn’t want to be rude, they were just very focused on not dying. Realistically, they knew they couldn’t do much. But maybe if they stared at the road hard enough while tapping their fingers on the armrest it would reduce the probability of a crash. It seemed reasonable enough. 

Soon enough, they reached the cabin, and Eret got out of the pickup truck as fast as possible. They wobbled for a second, but didn’t fall. Small victories, Eret thought. Puffy was already at the door of an admittedly very small house, knocking.

A blonde-haired woman opened the door.

“Hey, Niki!” Puffy greeted her amicably. Niki’s eyes went straight to Eret, walking up from behind.

“Puffy, what did you do?”

“Relax. For once, it’s something you would have done.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> puffy's such an interesting character i love her  
> also it's kind of up to you whether niki and puffy are roommates or "oh my god they were roommates" i kind of wanted to keep it ambiguous


	7. Home, House, Castle

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Other people are still thinking about Eret.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> other perspectives!  
> \- wilbur  
> \- niki  
> \- the masked figure (you guys probably know who this is but if you think i'm going to say it you're wrong)

Wilbur opened his eyes sleepily to see a vague outline of a person above him. 

“Mrmph,” he mumbled. “Whuddya want.”

“Have you seen Eret?” Phil asked.

Hearing the concern in Phil’s voice, Wilbur sat up, rubbing his eyes.

“Eret? Uhhhhh…” He blinked a couple times. “Yeah, I guess last night.”

“I can’t find them.”

“Mmm… what?”

“They weren’t in their bed this morning.”

“Maybe they went back to their village or grocery shopping or something. I’m going back to bed.” Wilbur flopped back onto his pillow, rolling over.

“Okay.” Phil hesitated. “But let me know if you think of anything. I’m worried about them.” 

Phil gently closed the door behind him, and Wilbur could feel himself drifting off again. 

“Wilbur, it’s noon,” Phil called up at him from the bottom of the stairs.

“I was tired.”

“Do you remember me waking you up this morning?” 

“Vaguely. I still have no idea where they went though. Sorry.”

“No, no, it’s fine, I’m just still concerned.” Phil smiled, but it was laced with tension. 

Wilbur sighed. “Phil, they really probably did head back to the village. They came here to learn to read. It’s only been… like, a week or two. They picked up the basics quick.”

“That’s true, but wouldn’t they have said goodbye?”

“Maybe they were ashamed,” a deep voice said from behind Wilbur, who jumped, surprised. He turned around to see the familiar pink of Techno’s hair. 

“Ashamed of what, though?” Phil persisted. “I tried to make it clear they were welcome here no matter what.”

Techno shook his head. “Remember when you first brought me home? It took me longer than you think to get comfortable. It’s tough, Phil. I chose to stay.” He hesitated. “I hate to say it, but I really wouldn’t be too surprised if Eret chose to leave.”

Phil nodded, face pulled tight. “We’ll talk… we can talk about this later.”

\---------------------------

Niki grabbed Puffy’s sleeve, pulling her inside.

“I’m sorry, can you wait outside for a second?” she asked the kid. She shut the door with a little bit more force than she intended, and she winced. “Puffywhatdidyoudo.” It came out in all one breath.

“They needed help, Niki. Calm down.”

Niki let out a deep breath, blowing her bangs away from her face. 

“I don’t want anything to do with your job. I live out here for a reason. Why I let your chaos in, I’ll never know.”

“I mean, this isn’t really part of my job. Actually, this is pretty much the exact opposite of what I was supposed to do for the job.”

“Puffy, that’s even worse. If you’re in trouble, I’m- this house- is in trouble by association. Doesn’t your employer have a _habit_ -” she clipped the t on the end of the word- “of damaging property?”

“Hey, didn’t we both have a talk about how we preferred breaking rules to breaking our moral codes? There’s a child out there. The child is in danger. I’m not sure what else I have to say, Niki.” 

“But there’s a reason the child is in danger.”

“There is a reason, I’m unsure what it is.”

Niki sighed. “It’s a big reason, isn’t it. No, don’t answer that. Go get the kid. I’m making hot chocolate.” She turned around and walked away.

“Sure.”

Niki returned, trying to carry 3 mugs in her hands without dropping them. She saw Puffy sitting on the couch next to the kid. That ugly couch. It was 3 different colors that didn’t match at all, and it really didn’t fit the aesthetic at all, but Puffy had insisted. Niki was reminded of just how stubborn Puffy was. She was beginning to realize that she had already lost this argument, whatever it was about. Niki wasn’t even sure what she was arguing for. 

Niki handed them two of the mugs before sitting down on the chair across from them. It was a rocking chair. It fit the aesthetic perfectly. Niki hadn’t had to argue about the chair at all. 

She took a long drink of her hot chocolate before speaking. 

“First of all, what’s your name and pronouns?” she asked the kid. Puffy opened her mouth, but Niki lifted up her hand. “Let them speak.”

“Eret. Anything works.” The kid- Eret’s- words were clipped. Niki could see their discomfort. 

Niki paused. “Do you… know why any of this is happening to you?”

Eret mumbled something under their breath. Puffy nudged them.

“I’m scared of telling you,” they said slightly louder. “It’s never ended well.” 

Niki tried hard to keep the worried expression off her face. She wasn’t sure if she was succeeding.

“We can’t help you if you don’t tell us anything,” she said, trying to keep her voice even.

Eret didn’t say anything. The silence was heavy, leaden, thick. Niki couldn’t bring herself to say anything else.

“Familiars,” Eret finally whispered. 

“You have a familiar?” Niki said, confused.

“Not yet.” Eret lifted up their leg, pulling up the cuff on their pants to reveal a Mark.

“Oh fuck,” Puffy said, speaking for the first time. “Never seen one like that before.” 

“I have,” Niki said grimly. “I find it hard to believe that you haven’t, Puffy.” 

“What do you mean?” Puffy turned towards her, her expression unreadable. 

“You know who has one like that, don’t you?”

“I don’t.”

“What do you mean? You worked for him, Puffy, you’re telling me you never saw it?”

Puffy shook her head slowly. “I work for a lot of men, Niki, and I find familiars are often a touchy subject for them.” 

Niki pressed her lips together and turned back to Eret. “May I look closer at it?”

Eret nodded slowly, lifting their leg up again. Niki knelt down to inspect it. Scales. A deep blackish purple that might look like a bruise should you only take a glance at it. Amethyst eyes. 

“Dragons,” Niki murmured.

Eret made an affirmative noise.

“You already knew,” Niki said, looking up sharply.

“It’s what they all said,” Eret said quietly. “I never knew if they were right. I’ve never seen a dragon.” 

“There’s only a few. And the stories…” Niki hesitated. “They all ended in tragedy.”

“Well, I assume so, from the way they all treated me.” Eret laughed, but it held no humor, only melancholy. 

“If it’s a fucking dragon I can kind of see why they’re after you, I’m gonna be honest here,” Puffy said. 

“Puffy!” Niki reprimanded, still staring at Eret’s mark.

Eret let out a bark of laughter. “I wish they weren’t.” 

“I’ll try to keep you safe,” Niki said, looking up to make eye contact with Eret. “But I can’t promise anything.”

“I understand. Promises have never ended well for me.”

Niki softened a little. “Me neither.”

\---------------------------

“What do you mean the kid escaped?” a man growled from the darkness.

“Mr. President, they have not escaped, simply… evaded me for the time being,” the masked figure responded. 

“How long do you suppose they’ll be ‘evading’ you for?” the president asked, making vague hand gestures around the word “evading.” 

The figure set his jaw. “I don’t fail missions.”

“Well, you don’t appear to be succeeding, do you?”

“I need more time.”

“I gave you plenty.”

The masked man snapped. “Schlatt, do you want the fucking dragonchild or not?” he asked angrily.

The president narrowed his eyes. “You are to address me formally,” he said carefully. “I want the kid. Don’t call them a dragonchild, that sounds much too regal for what they are. They’re a street rat. They’ve been a mark on the Department’s record for years. I can’t let them ‘evade’ us any longer.”

“I need more time.”

“You need to work harder.”

“I hope you still intend on paying me well.”

“Well, that depends on whether you intend on finishing the fucking job.”

“I do.”

“Then go.”

“I will.” The figure spun on his heel, his green cloak whipping around his back. The fabric slipped down his chest a bit, revealing the corner of a mark. A mark with purplish-black edges. 

It caught the president’s eye. He stared at it for a moment, thinking, before a smile curved across his face. As the masked man shut the heavy door to the room, Schlatt stood up, ideas racing through his head.

 _I wonder if I can get_ **_two_ ** _dragons on my side._

  
  


**Notes for the Chapter:**

> my FEET are so COLD i just want to go to bed but i spent my time writing this and now i have homework because being a student be like that sometimes eeeehhhhhhh


	8. Cold Pancakes

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Two days in, a visitor shows up. It's exactly who everyone was expecting it to be.

Eret walked into the kitchen, blearily rubbing their eyes. “What’s for breakfast?”

Puffy, who was sitting on the couch, turned around to face them. “Only two days and you’re already acting like you live here, huh?” She let out a light laugh. 

“Oh, um, I’m sorry, I can help with the dishes if you like? Sorry,” Eret said, blinking heavily.

“No, don’t you dare, we’re having pancakes for breakfast and you don’t have to help at all,” Niki called from the stove, where she was already cooking. “Puffy’s just trying to make a joke, but unfortunately for her she isn’t funny.”

“No, yes, I didn’t mean, you don’t have to do anything, eat the pancakes,” Puffy said, slightly flustered. 

“I… I guess I will eat the pancakes,” Eret said, slightly confused. “I like pancakes.” 

“Yeah, well, I sure hope you do,” Puffy said, turning back to her book. 

“Here,” Niki said, sliding 3 pancakes onto a plate. She handed it to Eret. “You can go sit next to Puffy. Don’t be too intimidated, she’s 5’2’’.” 

“That does NOT mean I’m not intimidating. Eret, you can still sit next to me but I am very intimidating and don’t ever think otherwise.” 

“I won’t,” Eret promised, finally letting themself laugh a little. 

Three loud knocks came from the front door, and the three of them all simultaneously glanced at it. 

“Niki,” Puffy said in a low voice. “Are we expecting company?”

“Puffy, have we ever been expecting company once in our lives? Eret, get behind the counter. In the cabinet? No, you’re too tall for that, only Puffy fits in there, just stay out of sight, okay?” Niki sounded panicked, but she kept a reasonably even tone. 

Eret did as she said, and ducked behind the counter. They hoped it was an okay hiding spot. They didn’t have any time to go anywhere else. They heard the click of the lock as Puffy opened the door.

“Oh. It’s you.” Puffy’s voice was filled with unconcealed disdain. 

“Hello, _Captain._ ”

Eret froze. They knew that voice. They knew that voice from the night… god, it was only four days ago, wasn’t it? This couldn’t happen again. No. They were determined to have at least a week before being kidnapped again by the same guy. 

“You know why I’m here, don’t you?” the dream man- as Eret had taken to thinking of him- said.

“Niki’s amazing pancakes?” 

“You’re insufferable,” the dream man said. “Where’s the kid?”

“Didn’t we have a conversation about this? I don’t plan on having children.”

“Not YOUR kid, the kid that conveniently disappeared out of my truck at the same time you drove a different truck back here.”

“Correlation does not equal causation.” 

“What the hell is that supposed to mean?” 

“It’s elementary statistics!”

“Captain, we both know very well what I’m talking about, and I would very much appreciate if you would help me out.”

“Depends. How much are you paying me? We both know very well that I don’t work for free. Would you like some pancakes?”

The dream man hesitated.

“Too bad, you’re not getting any. Now leave my house, please. Thank you!”

Eret could hear the door creak as Puffy tried to close it, but the click of the lock didn’t come. 

“You’re not going to get rid of me by closing a door.”

“I’m aware. You’re like some kind of cockroach, you’re rather hard to squish,” Puffy said sarcastically.

“Captain, if you don’t cooperate, I’ll have to come back with backup.”

“I WAS your backup. Did you manage to hire someone new within three days? Didn’t know I was that replaceable.” Puffy snorted. 

Eret’s breathing slowed down, bit by bit. Puffy was stalling for time. Time was good. Eret didn’t know what they were supposed to do with the time, but they could wait for some kind of signal. They didn’t want to move. Movement would get them noticed. 

“Let me in.” Eret heard the muffled sounds of what they assumed was the dream man trying to get inside. They took in a sharp breath, holding it.

“HEY hey hey hey.” Puffy said loudly. “That’s illegal. You need a warrant. I can sue you. I’ve sued men before.”

“I act under the government.”

“No, you act under some sort of pseudo-government organization that probably shouldn’t even exist. The “president” of your department is a self important twat who thinks he has power.” Puffy raised her voice as she continued talking. 

Eret turned their head to the side, seeing Niki tucked behind a corner of the hallway. It wasn’t exactly a hiding place, but they could tell she didn’t want to get involved. 

“Schatt is in charge of the Department of Familiars. If you don’t believe it exists, I would recommend you take it up with people other than me.” The dream man’s voice was sharp as a knife. He was clearly getting impatient, and Puffy was not having it.

“Maybe _you_ don’t exist.”

“I would appreciate it if you let me in.” 

“And I would appreciate if you jumped in a fucking lake.”

“I’m not asking anymore, Captain.”

“I’m perfectly aware of my legal rights. Come back with a warrant, once you’ve somehow proved to a court of law that there’s a _chance_ of a crime being committed here.”

“I’ll be back.”

The door slammed. This time, Eret heard the click of the door. They began to stand up, but Niki frantically waved her arms at them, so they stayed sitting behind the counter. After about five minutes of excruciating silence, someone exhaled loudly.

“The bastard’s finally gone,” Puffy muttered. She turned her attention to Eret. “We have to get you out of here.”

“Wait, but how is he going to prove a crime has been committed?” 

“He’s not going to prove it’s a crime that you’re here. He’s probably going to try to prove I’ve committed a different crime so he can search the house. He has an assortment to choose from. I’ve committed a decent amount of crimes.”

She saw the look on Eret’s face.

“For money! I promise!”

“That doesn’t make it better at all!”

“Yeah, but it’s financially justified. Most of them. One time I burned down that guy’s shed for free. He kind of deserved it though, don’t you agree?”

“The dream man?”

“What?”

“You burned down the shed of the man you were just talking to?” Eret said slowly.

“Yeah. He stole my flashlight keychain.”

“That’s arson.”

“That’s the _point_.” 

“I actually didn’t know that happened, and I’m a _little_ bit horrified, but also I agree he kind of deserves it,” Niki said, walking into the room. 

“Your roommate’s an arsonist!” Puffy said brightly.

“No arson in the house.”

“Not even a little bit?”

“Not even a little bit.” Niki glanced at Eret, who was still leaning awkwardly against the counter. “Puffy, come back to my room, we have a couple things to discuss about that conversation. Not about the criminal record,” she added quickly, seeing Puffy open her mouth. “About… everything else.”

Puffy nodded silently. She shot an apologetic glance at Eret- for what, Eret wasn’t sure- and followed Niki into the hallway. She shut the door behind her. 

Eret sat down on the couch again. Their pancakes had gotten cold. 

  
  
  
  


**Notes for the Chapter:**

> look, lawful/neutral good Hero Puffy in canon is all well and good, but I really love writing chaotic good/neutral puffy in this story so we are going to keep it that way lol. this was fun to write cause I love dialogue so much. also the "masked man" name lore is not completely finished yet so i still refuse to say the name, but it's beginning to appear. slowly but surely.


	9. Roadtrip

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> the great escape  
> tw // light violence, knives (stay safe! If you want to read it without these parts, I'd recommend skipping the Puffy POV segment, but be warned that it's pretty integral to the story <3)

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This chapter took me ages because I suddenly had a good idea for how to end this and so I've actually changed my entire idea of how the plot was going to happen. All of the foreshadowing I did is still mostly valid, except for everything about color symbolism. Forget the color symbolism. I tried so hard to fit it into the story but it's not working so I'm going to abandon it. Everything else should still be sufficiently mysterious and foreboding, however.  
> ALSO, I've finished the entire outline! So I have a rough idea of how each chapter is going to happen and what I need to include in each. You'll see that I've updated the chapters to 9/12 now, I might make a 13th chapter but that depends on how I write the 11th. The 11th is a very important chapter. Thanks for waiting for me to finish this one!

“We have a plan,” Puffy announced from behind Eret, slamming the door open. They turned around to face her.

“What is it?” Eret asked.

“I drive somewhere. With you in the car.” Puffy reached into her purse, rummaging around. She pulled out some car keys with a triumphant look on her face. “Come on. Let’s go. Do you have stuff to grab?”

Eret looked down at themself. They were still wearing the same clothes they had when they arrived, although they had washed them. Everything Puffy and Niki had was much too small for their tall frame. 

“...Not really?”

“Okay, that’s a fair point, sorry about that. I’ll grab you some food though. Then we can leave.”

“Are we in a big hurry?” Eret stood up to follow Puffy to the kitchen. 

“It’s not that we’re really in a big hurry, it’s just that he’s really unpredictable in everything he does. He’ll be back. We have to get out before then.” Puffy opened the pantry. “NIKI, DO WE HAVE ANY SNACKS?”

“If it’s not in the pantry, we don’t have it. Understandably, I’ve been a little busy to shop. You don’t have to yell. I’m right here,” Niki said from behind Eret. 

“Mmm.” Puffy frowned. She turned to Eret and opened her mouth to say something.

Eret cut her off. “It’s fine. You’re right, we should leave as soon as possible. I don’t need much.” They smiled, tight lipped. 

“Are you sure?” Niki asked.

“Mhm. Can we leave now?”

“Okay, follow me then, let’s get going.” Puffy walked towards the door with Eret on her heels. “Now where the hell did I put my keys again?”

\---------------------------

“What’s that noise? Do you have something in the back?” Eret asked, turning around to look.

“What noise? Hang on, be quiet for a second.” Puffy turned down the radio and listened intently for a second. “Shit, I think we’ve got a flat. I’m gonna pull over, kay?”

Eret nodded as Puffy did just that. She hopped out of the side of the car to take a look. “Yeah, probably a flat. Thanks for pointing that out, I don’t think we could have driven safely for much longer on this thing.” She walked around the car. “Shouldn’t be a problem, we usually have an extra tire on the back.”

Eret heard the faint sound of a zipper, and then the much louder sound of Puffy cursing. “We don’t have an extra tire. I forgot that Niki used it to make a swing.”

“Why did she do that?” Eret asked, laughing a little at the absurdity.

“We were being impulsive! We thought a tire swing would spice our lives up a little!” Puffy said defensively. 

“Did it?”

“NO! Our lives were too busy being spiced up by a  _ kidnapped child _ ,” Puffy said, peeking around the car to give Eret a look.

“Touché. So what are we going to do now?”

“I don’t know, I’m bad in stressful situations. Also time sensitive situations. In fact I’m pretty bad in most situations in general so don’t expect too much.”

“We could call a place to replace the tire?”

“Good idea. Do we have service out here? Barely,” Puffy snorted in disdain. “What if he’s following us or something though? Anyone that’s going to help is going to take hours.” She brightened suddenly. “Wait, I have an idea. Now hear me out,” she said, leaning against the door. “What if you started walking ahead and I try to get the tire fixed? I can drive after you once the car gets fixed and pick you up, and you’ll get further even if it takes ages.”

Eret blinked at her. “Why does that actually sound like an okay idea?”

“Because it is! See, I have good ideas sometimes!”

“I wouldn’t say  _ good _ , but I think it’s our best option at the moment. I will admit I don’t have any better ideas.” Eret said, unbuckling their seatbelt and opening the door. 

“Hang on, I’m going to give you some cash just in case,” Puffy said, rummaging through her purse. She counted out some bills. “I’ve got 23 dollars and 53 cents. Take it.” 

Eret accepted the money. “Thanks, Puffy. Even if we don’t meet up again, thank you for all the help.”

“I’m going to do everything that’s in my power to meet up again. You should get going, though. I’ll see you down the road.”

Eret gave a joking salute. “Bye, Captain!”

Puffy returned the gesture, “Until we meet again.”

\---------------------------

Eret was on edge. They weren’t quite sure why. It had been a while walking down the road- had they walked four miles? Maybe five? They’d seen a couple of gas stations, as well as a very tempting fruit stand that Eret forced themself to walk past. 

Their feet were hurting a little bit, but it wasn’t much. This was nothing compared to the other running they’d done in the last two weeks. They had never expected leaving the village to involve this much physical activity. 

They spotted another fruit stand up ahead. Their stomach rumbled. They hadn’t eaten anything since Niki’s pancakes that morning. There was a guy sitting at this one, though. He was on his phone. Eret was surprised that he could do anything, considering there was little to no cell service. 

Eret couldn’t help it. Passing the fruit stand, they stopped to look at the apples, reaching into their pockets for Puffy’s money. The guy started, looking up at Eret. Eret made eye contact with him before looking down again. The guy grabbed a notebook from besides the register and scribbled something in it before passing it to Eret.

_ How old are you? Where are your parents? _

“Um, I’m 17. Not here, I guess?” Eret offered.

_ I’m Callahan. Do you want to call your parents? You look much younger than 17. _

“It might be a little hard to call my parents, considering they left quite a while ago,” Eret laughed.

_ I’m sorry. Do you have anyone that you  _ **_would_ ** _ like to call? _

Eret hesitated. “Really?”

Callahan nodded. 

“That would be great, actually.”

Callahan slid his phone across the table to Eret, already opened to the keypad. Eret hesitated, trying to remember the number. They slowly tapped it in and held the phone to their ear. 

“Hello? It’s Eret.”

\---------------------------

“I’m cutting out? Please, I just need a spare tire,” Puffy was practically begging to the person on the phone. 

“I’m sorry ma’am, I can’t hear you,” a tinny voice said from the phone. Puffy hung up. She paced back and forth. She felt like punching something. Eret must have made it a few miles at least by now- it had been a little over an hour since she had pulled over, and the entire time had been nothing but phone calls. She silently cursed the terrible service. She remembered there was nobody else out here. She cursed the terrible service slightly louder. 

Puffy sighed. She didn’t really want to walk to a place with better service, but it was starting to seem like the only option. 

She rapped her fingernails against the side of the car, thinking. She dialed another number. 

“Niki?”

“Puffy?”

“We got a flat tire. Can you find a tire place or something and get them to bring it to me? I don’t know how that works but if I can get a tire that would be great.”

“I can’t hear you very well, but you got a flat tire?”

“Mhm, anything you can do?”

“Uhhhh, I can try to call someplace? I’ll do my best to get you help. Where are you?”

“We went straight down that long road, not sure what it’s called?”

“I didn’t catch all of that, but down the long road?”

Puffy nodded, then remembered Niki couldn’t see her. “Yeah.”

“Okay. I’ll call you back if I can do anything.”

“Bye.” Puffy hung up the call. At least something was happening now, but Puffy knew it was going to take ages for Niki to do anything. For one, they didn’t have another car. Plus, car centers had a habit of being difficult. Puffy had learned that all too well over the last hour. She slipped back into the driver’s seat. Might as well sit down while she was waiting.

Puffy was startled awake some time later by the sound of an engine. She rubbed her eyes. Did she fall asleep? She looked out the window. She could see a motorcycle rapidly approaching the car. It stopped right next to her window.

“Huh?” Puffy asked, yawning. “Do you need something?” The driver’s face was obscured by a helmet. 

“I was hoping you could give me directions.”

Puffy narrowed her eyes. She knew that voice. “Even if I could, I wouldn’t.”

“Don’t be like that, Captain. I’ve got money for you this time,” the masked man said in a slightly condescending tone. 

“I’m not so easily swayed by your loose change.”

“A hundred dollars if you tell me which way the kid went. You don’t even have to tell me, just point.”

“No. How did you find  _ me _ ?” 

“A combination of threatening your roommate and a cheap tracker I tossed in your backseat this morning. I saw you leaving. Figured I might as well follow.” 

“I wouldn’t tell you anything for a million dollars.”

“Oh, we’ve graduated from ‘mercenary’ to ‘hero’ now, have we? I’m glad you’re having character development, but it would be easier for us both if you would take the money and get out of my business.” 

“Please leave.” Puffy got out of the car and stood up to her full height. She wasn’t very tall, but she was more confident out of the confined truck. 

“Please,” the masked man mocked, making air quotes with his hands. “We can do this the hard way if you want.”

“You’re all talk. I could best you in a hand-to-hand fight any day.”

Quicker than a flash, the masked man had a knife pressed to her throat. “I’m sure you could, Captain, but this isn’t hand to hand. This is a knife fight.” Puffy couldn’t see his face, but she was sure he was smiling. “And I’m willing to bet you don’t have a knife.”

“Kill me, then,” Puffy spat, pure anger.

“Are you sure that’s what you want to do? We’ll find the kid either way, and if you’re dead, you can’t help them at all.”

Puffy was silent.

“What would Niki think?” he asked, pressing the knife closer to Puffy’s throat. 

“You don’t get to talk to me about Niki.”

“You have five minutes to tell me what I want to hear.”

Puffy could feel the cold metal at her throat. She raised her hand and pointed in the direction Eret had headed. The man pulled the knife away and Puffy collapsed to the ground.

“You’ve been a big help, Captain,” the man said, getting back on his motorcycle. 

“Fuck you,” Puffy gasped out as the bike drove away. 


End file.
